The Attorney General of Northern Ireland has unreasonably decided that current ban on same-sex adoption will remain in order to ensure the best interest of the child.
The blatant discrimination was justified by Attorney General John Larkin, QC, because adopting a child, he said, should be for the benefit of the child rather than the parents who wish to adopt.
The Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission brought the case forward on behalf of a lesbian couple wishing to adopt a child.
Northern Ireland is the only government in the United Kingdom that has an enforced ban on same-sex adoption.
Perhaps Monye Anyadike-Danes, QC, said it best when she questioned how the Attorney General could possibly justify the ban “without even knowing whether [couples] have the qualities to offer a child a nurturing and loving and permanent home.”
Tell John Larkin: Allow same-sex couples to adopt in Northern Ireland!
We the undersigned urge you to repeal the ban on same-sex adoption in Northern Ireland. This discriminatory law promotes inequality and denies children, as well as potential adopters, a loving family.
It is outrageous to suggest that it would not be in the child’s best interest to be adopted by a devoted couple. Children should be offered stability and love in any adoptive parents home and this should not be defined by a prospective parent’s sexuality.
We ask you to please judge couples by the content of their character rather than homophobic prejudice.
Thank you for taking our comments and concerns into serious consideration.
